What is YouTube Kids?

YouTube is currently one of the top social media platforms in the internet. Here is where artists like Justin Bieber were discovered. YouTube also paved the way for hundreds of viral videos around the globe. YouTube is also the place where online sensations and celebrities get their fan base.

Besides music videos and music covers, we can also see a lot of kid inspired videos on YouTube. This is why I allow my kids to use my Smartphone every now and then. My two year old actually learned his ABC’s, colors and counting through the videos that he watches on YouTube. My eldest on the other hand is enjoying watching Pokemon episodes and Dinosaurs on the Train.

However, even though there are many educational videos on YouTube, you as a parent should be aware of every video they see online. You do not want to be i a situation wherein you are caught off-guard upon realizing that what your kids are watching in YouTube are not kids oriented anymore. As I have mentioned in my earlier post about digital media and kids, limiting your children’s time online and guiding them on what they see online is a must.

Here is where YouTube Kids comes into the story. It is an video hosting platform created by YouTube with kid-friendly and educational videos in mind.

Here are the things that I love about this application.

It features several education program and episodes that kids would definitely love. Videos are categorized into four types – Shows, Music, Learning and Explore.

You can edit the settings of the application to be able to filter the videos according to the age of your child. You can choose Pre-school, School Age or All Kids.

It has a grown-up verification, so unless your kids can read numbers, they will not be able to change the settings of the application.

You can turn off the SEARCH button, thus the only videos that your kids can access are the videos that are pre-chosen by the application according to the age settings that you have initially activated.It also has bigger buttons and captions. You can choose larger fronts and icons for a more kid-friendly dashboard for your kids.

You can set how long your kids will be allowed to access the videos from the app. This is a perfect way on knowing how much time your kids are really spending on YouTube videos.

The YouTube Kids application can be downloaded for free on Google Play.